Unrequited Love
by Lady Jane's Muse
Summary: A sixteen year old Sam and a twenty year old Dean talk about girls  Last chapter added
1. Chapter 1

Sam walked over to his brother, sure that he was wasting his time but not seeing any other option.

"Hey Dude, can I use your car tomorrow?"

"Don't you have school tomorrow?" Dean asked as he looked up from the gun he was cleaning. Sam had been able to drive since he was fourteen and had gotten his official drivers licence almost two months ago but he had never really shown any interest in the Impala, or any other car. Dean also knew that Sam would not want to miss out on school. For some reason, the geek seemed to really enjoy sitting through all the boring classes. In the latest school, he'd even joined the maths club and the physics club.

"Yeah, Dean. Tomorrow's Thursday, of course I have school," Sam replied, he knew this was a stupid idea and the last thing he wanted was for Dean to start asking questions but he was running out of options and using the Impala seemed like the best plan. "So, can I?"

"If you don't want to go on the bus, I can just drive you there in the morning and pick you up again after."

"You'll never get up that early. Can I just borrow it for the day?" he asked again, hoping that he didn't sound as if he was whining.

"Dude, I'm not letting you take the car just so it can sit in the high school car park for eight hours. I might need to go somewhere." Dean didn't really have any plans but he didn't want to be stuck in the trailer park they were currently calling home for the entire day.

"Dean, we're living in the middle of nowhere! Where could you possibly need to go to?" From the raised eyebrows his brother gave him, Sam knew that he was getting nowhere with his request. If anything, he was just making Dean curious about the reason for him wanting the car in the first place. "Ok, you know what, just forget it. Forget I asked."

"Sammy, don't go stomping off in a huff. Why don't you just tell me why you want the car?"

"No, it's stupid," Sam pouted, "You'll just laugh at me."

"Sam, I promise I won't laugh, just tell me what's going on?" Dean encouraged, hoping that he would be able to keep a straight face. He could just about remember what it was like to be sixteen and have your whole world depend on the most trivial things. Sam's response, however, was not quite what he was expecting.

"Well, there's this girl…" Sam then proceeded to tell Dean about April Morgan, head cheerleader and most popular girl in the school. As far as Sam was concerned she was the most beautiful girl he had ever laid eyes on. Her big brown eyes, waist length chestnut hair and dazzling smile made a combination that he just couldn't get out of his head. They had nearly all the same classes and while Sam was usually very studious, he was finding it increasingly difficult to concentrate in school. The problem was that she didn't feel the same way. Sam had been enrolled in the school for almost three weeks and they had hardly spoken to each other. In fact, Sam knew that the two conversations they had had contained less than twenty words each and both concerned homework. He just didn't make it onto her radar. It wasn't until he overheard her discussing her favourite cars that he got the idea about the Impala. Apparently, her last boyfriend drove an old mustang and she found the classic car more of a turn on than it's driver. Sam was hoping that the Impala would at least make her realise that he was alive.

"So, you see, I really need to use the car, Dean." he finished, sure that he must sound as pathetic as he felt.

"Ok Sammy, you can use the car," Dean agreed, feeling sorry for his little brother, "But I've got to warn you, it might not have the effect you want. It's just not your style. You'll have more luck with the ladies if you just chill out a bit and be yourself."

"I can't be myself, Dean" Sam reminded him, "I have to be 'Thomas McNulty' until Dad finishes the job and we leave town. Anyway, it always works for you. Only last week you were referring to the car as a chick magnet."

"Yeah," He agreed, smiling as he remembered some of his conquests, "but you and I are very different, Sam. The kind of chicks I pick up would eat you alive."

"Haven't you ever wanted someone so bad, someone you just couldn't have?" Sam asked in exasperation. Surely Dean must have been turned down by someone. Sam desperately tried to remember what his brother had been like when he was sixteen but, if Dean had moaned about unrequited love, Sam couldn't recall it.

"Dude, do you realise you're nearly quoting Def Leppard. Next you'll be asking 'Without love, what is life?' or something." he replied, avoiding any real answer to the question. "Look, if you really like her, just ask her out. If she say's no, it's her loss. Plenty more left in the sea."

"Yeah," said Sam, lack of confidence showing in his voice. Maybe Dean was right, maybe using the Impala wasn't his style after all. Sam just wasn't sure if he could pluck up the courage to go and talk to her, let alone ask her out. After thinking it over he decided what the hell, if he didn't ask he would never know. If she said yes, he would be the happiest boy alive. If she said no, he would only have to live with the humiliation for another week or so before the 'McNulty's' left town. He could cope with that.


	2. Chapter 2

Dean had never been so bored in his life. It wasn't the fact that he had places to go and people to see, far from it. It was the fact that for the first time since is father had handed over the keys to the Impala, he had been stuck at home without a set of wheels. He had polished his entire weapons collection, read through some of his father research, watched some day time TV. Hell, he had even cleaned. Nothing could take away the restless feeling he had of being held prisoner in the tin can they were currently calling home until his little brother finished school. He would have gone down to the school himself to collect the car, hiking the three miles down the back country lanes, but as soon as the thought crossed his mind the heavens opened. When it finally stopped raining there was no point in him walking the distance. By the time he got there, Sam would already be starting the drive back. He was starting to regret doing the little punk a favour by letting him have the car in the first place.

After what seemed like hours of clock watching, Sam finally pulled up outside and Dean was out of the door before he had even switched off the engine.

"Thank God you're back, dude. I was going stir crazy in there." Dean said, unconsciously stroking the Impala in what could only be described as a loving caress. If any strangers where watching the scene they would probably have a hard time deciding whether Dean was talking to his little brother or the car.

"Whatever, man." Sam said as he trudged towards the trailer, shoulders hunched.

It was the sound of dejection in Sam voice, more than his body language, that made Dean realise he was not receiving the enthusiastic story of how Sam had conquered his one true love, or latest crush at least. Torn between itching to be behind the wheel of his baby and wanting to know how Sam's day had gone, Dean decided to kill two birds with one stone.

"Come Sammy, lets head to the diner. Burgers are on me." He said, half in the car already.

"I'm not really in the mood, Dean." Sam protested.

"Well, Dad's not going to be back until really late and we're out of frozen pizza so unless you want to cook, I'd get your ass in the car." Dean smirked, knowing that he would probably have to drag the information he wanted out of Sam, plan already forming in his mind.

The small diner on the edge of town would have been described as 'retro' if it had been in the middle of a large town or city. However, in its current location, five miles from small town Ohio and fifty miles from anywhere else, it was just badly in need of modernisation. If it wasn't for the local teenagers hanging out there in the evening, and the occasional lost trucker, the place would have closed down long ago. Thankfully, it was still fairly early so most of the after school crowd hadn't turned up yet. Dean thought there were just enough people in the diner for Sam to be suitably embarrassed enough for his plan to work but not enough people for Dean to lose too much face if Sam called his bluff. Not that it mattered, this time next week the town would have already forgotten that the 'McNulty' family ever graced them with their presence.

Sam was predictably stoic on the car journey, sulking too much to even complain about his brother's choice of music. As they slid into a booth in the corner the conversation didn't improve but Dean knew that he just had to bide his time. Two cheeseburgers, a portion of fries, a slice of apple pie and a chocolate milk shake each later and bother boys were feeling much better.

"So kiddo, you ask this April chick out or what?" Dean asked as he leant back on the red leather seat.

"None of your business," Sam replied, scowl falling back into place. "Just forget I said anything yesterday."

"Come on, Sam. I need to know if my baby's magnetic charms are failing! What happened?"

"Can't you just leave it." Sam said, knowing from the evil glint in Dean's eye that the answer would be a resounding 'no'. Dean could be the most stubborn person he knew. If Dean didn't get the answer he wanted, Sam knew that he would try to come up with some cruel and unusual way of making Sam talk. When Dean asked the waitress to bring their bill, Sam had glimmer of hope that Dean would let them leave without causing too much of a scene. However, his hope was short lived. As soon as the waitress moved onto the next table, Dean started to smirk once more.

"Well, would you look at that! Who would have thought that a couple of cheeseburgers would cost so much!"

"Just pay the bill so we can leave." Sam hadn't wanted to come to the diner in the first place. He definitely didn't want to be there when April and the rest of the cheerleading squad arrived with the football team trailing behind them.

"Well, I would but, you know what? I think I forgot my wallet!" Dean said, raising his voice slightly in mock surprise and making sure that he at least got the attention of their waitress. Once she thought that her tip was in jeopardy along with the rest of the bill, she would be keeping a close eye on the Winchester brothers. "Do you think they'd let us work it off? I'm sure that the sight of you washing up, or better yet, standing in front of the grill soaking up all that fat will just make the head cheerleader swoon! She'll be falling into your arms in no time!"

"Dean, I know you have the money. Just pay the bill." Sam said through gritted teeth.

"I really can't, Sam. I just can't seem to find my wallet anywhere! Maybe if you try telling me about how your day went I would be able to remember where I've put our cold hard cash."

"Fine!" Sam said, defeated. "I didn't ask her out and it's all your fault!"

"What the hell did I do?" Dean asked in confusion. He'd given Sam a little pep talk the night before and given up the Impala for the whole day. How could he possibly be the cause of Sam bottling out?

A/N - Sorry I took so long to update but I was busy working on another story. Hopefully Chapter 3 will be up quite soon. Hope you enjoyed reading. LJx


	3. Chapter 3

When Sam had gone to bed the previous night he thought that Dean had been talking sense for once. He knew that he should just relax and be himself. After all, why would he want to be with someone who didn't want to look beyond the act he was putting on. He was determined to get on the school bus as normal and just talk to her. He knew that if he could just start a conversation with her that he would be able to ask her out. Despite having a very peaceful nights rest, when Sam woke up that morning, all of his confidence seemed to disappear. Dean was still snoring in the other room and waking him up would not result in the kind of encouragement Sam needed.

As he showered and got dressed for the day, Sam became increasingly nervous. He started to run through possibly topics of conversation and opening lines in his head but each one sounded worse than the one before and he had the horrible feeling that, even if he did manage to walk up to her, he would get completely tongue tied and not be able to utter a word anyway. When he closed the trailer door behind him, the sunlight seemed to bounce of the morning dew that had collected on the hood of the Impala. In Sam's overactive imagination, the car was positively glowing like some kind of beacon, calling to him, willing him to use it as his talisman. As he looked at the car he reasoned that he didn't like the school bus anyway. Dean had said he could borrow the car if he wanted and that wasn't likely to happen again anytime soon. If driving to school happened to attract the attention of a certain girl, well, that was just an added bonus.

By the time he pulled into the school car park, Sam had a glimpse of what it felt like to be Dean, speeding down the road, engine purring, favourite tunes in the tape deck. He would never admit it to Dean but he loved this car almost as much as his older brother did.

He slowly switched off the engine and got out of the car. He had arrived early and there was no need to rush to class so he leaned back against the Impala, enjoying the early morning sunshine and taking in the appreciative glances he and the car were getting from the other students who passed on their way to the school entrance. He even got a 'Nice Ride, McNulty' from one of the school jocks. As he stood in he car park he could feel his confidence slowly coming back only to have it shattered again moments later.

Sam saw April as soon as she climbed out of her friends car. Her hair was loose, falling in soft waves to her waist, where it met the top of her cheerleading skirt. Her lightly tanned skin seemed to glow and as she started to weave her way through the parked cars, it was if she was moving in slow motion. Sam had no idea who had designed the cheerleading outfits for the school but he didn't know whether the thank them or curse them. While the outfits definitely had the effect of heightening school spirits, Sam was sure that the effect was not quite what the designer had in mind. As she moved towards him, he was sure that she would just pass by without a second glance, caught up in the conversation she was having with her friends but as she neared him, she spotted the Impala and changed direction, unable to resist the car's magnetic charms.

"Wow! Cool car!" She exclaimed, making a bee line for Sam, "Hi, it's Thomas right? Is this car yours" she asked

It took Sam a few seconds to recover from the surprise that she knew his name, even if it was the fake one he was using. "It's my brothers," he replied, not thinking quick enough to lie.

"I didn't know you had a brother. Does he go to school here?"

"No, he's like twenty," Sam replied, watching as she walked along the car, running her hand over the bonnet in awe. Sam knew that the school bell would ring in five more minutes. If he was going to ask her out, he would have to do it now. If he left it any longer, the moment would be gone and he would never pluck up the courage again. "Listen, April, I was wondering… I mean, if you're not busy or anything…"

"What's his name?"

"Who?" Sam asked, completely sidetracked by her interruption

"Your brother's, silly?" April smiled, looking at him for the first time since she had stopped to admire the car. "I bet he's good looking. Anyone who owns a car like this must be hot."

Sam's only response was to stand, open-mouthed, disappointment written clearly on his face. Dean wasn't even here, she had never even laid eyes on him and he was still the one that she was swooning over. He was tempted to make up a story about just how unattractive Dean was in he hope of turning her attention to him. He had just started to think of a particularly convincing story where Dean was hideously disfigure on some sort of accident but he didn't get the chance to put it into words. Before he knew it she was handing him a piece of paper.

"Look, here's my number. If that big brother of yours is at a loose end on Friday night, you tell him to give April Morgan a call. Tell him I'd love to go for a ride in his car with him." she added with a wink before running into the school as the bell rang.

To say that Sam had been in a foul mood for the rest for the day would be an understatement. No only did he have the humiliation of being rejected by the girl he adored, he was now being forced to recount the whole tale to Dean who's ego was growing by the second. As far as Sam was concerned, the sooner they were able to leave town the better. He didn't want to lay eyes on April Morgan ever again.


	4. Chapter 4

Dean knew he shouldn't be smiling at his little brother's misfortune but he just couldn't help it. Part of him was even tempted to ask for her number, knowing that the look on Sam's face would be priceless. He managed to resist the urge though. While Sam liked to think of himself as a grown up, Dean knew that he was still capable of throwing a tempter tantrum and Dean did not want to have to deal with a patented Sam Winchester hissy fit if he could help it.

"I did warn you, little dude," he said as he drained the last of his milkshake and tried to get his grin under control. "That car knows who her master is and my baby is nothing but loyal."

Sam only grunted in reply, failing to see how his brother could possibly find the situation amusing. He just wanted to get back to their trailer and do some serious moping. He didn't think he would be happy again until the town was in their rear view mirror. Not that the next town would be any better, they never were.

"Seriously, you should have listened to my advice," Dean continued, more to fill in the brooding silence than anything else. "Next time just be yourself. If a girl can't see how great my little bro is, she's not worth it, man."

"Just drop it, Dean. There's no point in talking about it.." Sam replied but stopped mid flow as the bell above the door to the diner jingled. "Great, she's here. Can you just pay the bill now so we can leave?"

As Dean looked over to the door, his first thought was that Sam had finally acquired some taste and his head involuntary tilted as he took in the long legs and the curves.

"That's her?" he asked, taking his brothers grim expression as an affirmative. "Sam, you sure that girl's only sixteen?"

Sam only nodded slowly in reply. Dean's response was a quick shake of his head as if to forcibly remove the image of the girl from his mind while he muttered the word 'jailbait' under his breath. Sam was grateful when Dean managed to catch the eye of their waitress who indicated that she would be over in a minute to collect her money. Unfortunately, Deans movement also caught the eye of a certain cheerleader who liked what she saw and made her way over to their table. As she got nearer, Sam could feel his face going red. He just wanted to curl up under their table and die but all he could do was sit there and pray that Dean didn't do anything stupid.

"Hi, do you boys mind if I join you?" she asked as she flicked her long hair over her shoulder and smiled seductively.

"Say, are you going to introduce me to your friend, Tommy?" Dean asked with raised eyebrows, unable to resist teasing his brother, making sure he used the fake name which Sam hated.

"It's Thomas!" Sam spat back through gritted teeth before getting up from his seat. "I'll wait for you in the car, Dave!" he said before stomping off.

"Well, looks like it's just me and you, sugar" April said as she slipped into the booth, taking Sam's now vacant seat. She knew that something was going on with the brothers but she didn't care. The twenty year old sitting opposite her was as hot as she imagined, giving off just the right amount of a dangerous vibe to interest her. She may be a small town girl but she had learnt long ago that she could sweet talk any man and she was confident that in five minutes she would have 'Dave McNulty' wrapped around her little finger. Before she could say anything else the waitress appeared to collect her payment and he rose from his seat. She thought he had the cutest smile but the words that he issued from it did not make her smile in return.

"Sorry honey, but I don't do high school." Dean said as he put on his battered leather jacket. He couldn't resist one more appreciative glance though, reasoning that there was no harm in looking. Before he followed Sam to the car, he winked and added "Look me up in a few years and maybe you'll get to ride in my car then."

The journey back to their trailer was heavy with silence as Sam refused to speak or even look at his older brother. Dean knew from experience that Sam was capable of sulking for days and anything he said would just make Sam even more mad at him. He decided to just ride it out and wait for Sam to get over it in his own time.

When they arrived, their Dad's van was parked outside the trailer and at first Dean though something must have gone wrong for him to be back so early. Any worry he had quickly dissolved as John Winchester came out of the trailer, waving towards the Impala before opening the boot of his van to start unloading it. When Sam got out of the car, he hardly glanced in his dad's direction and made no reply to his dad's greeting. He simply stomped into the trailer, making sure to slam the door behind him on his way in.

"What's his problem?" John asked

"Just girl trouble," Dean replied with a smile and went on to explain the whole story.

Sam didn't know how long he had been lying on his bed and brooding for before his father came to talk to him. Part of him wanted to be left alone but part of him was glad that John had noticed that he was upset. Sam loved his father but he had realised long ago that John could not always be relied upon for moral support if he didn't recognise the issue Sam had as a real problem. In the Winchester household, there was often little time given to indulge in normal teenage angst.

"Hey Kiddo, Dean told me what happened. You want to talk about it?"

"Not really," Sam replied, "I just don't want to see April Morgan ever again. Can I skip school until we leave? It'll only be for a few days."

"Sorry Sammy, you're going to have to grin and bear it." John replied, surprised as the uncharacteristic request. If Sam wanted to skip school, he must be heartbroken. "Look, I want to tell you something that I think will make you feel better but first you have to promise me that you won't tell Dean."

"Ok" Sam agreed straight away, already curious.

"No, you have to really promise me, Sam. Dean can't find out about this."

"I promise, Dad. I won't tell Dean anything."

"Ok. Now Dean told me that you tried to use his car to impress a girl in school. Do you remember a job I did about 3 or 4 years ago down in Louisiana? Dean would have been about your age and it was when I bought the truck and gave him the Impala" John paused to make sure Sam could remember, continuing when Sam nodded in recollection. "The reason the car didn't work for you is because of what happened in Louisiana. Your brother was quite a goofy looking kid when he was a teenager and he was like you, not having much luck with the ladies and generally moping about. To tell the truth I was getting sick of it so I came up with this idea, a way of helping the kid out. Sam, are you sure you'll be able to keep this a secret because if Dean finds out he'll go mad?"

"Yeah, Dad. I swear I won't tell him" Sam agreed eagerly, more curious than ever.

"Well, I was doing a job for this Voodoo priest and he told me about this kind of love spell that you can put on a object. Dean was always losing stuff and breaking stuff so the Impala was the only thing that I could think of that I knew he would look after. Anyway, the priest put some voodoo mojo on the car and turned it into a good luck charm for Dean, helping him to attract girls. It was only supposed to last for a few weeks, just long enough for him to build up some confidence, but the damn thing won't wear off. Thing is, because the car belongs to Dean, it only works for him."

"No way! Voodoo? Are you for real?" Sam asked. He didn't think he had heard anything so ridiculous. Sam knew that his dad was good at lying but that was to other people. As far as Sam knew, his dad had never lied to him or Dean.

"I shit you not," John replied. "I may be getting old but I'm not stupid. I know exactly what you brother gets up to. If he knew that all those girls were the result of a spell I had put on the Impala rather than the result of his good looks and charm, he'd go ape. Now, I probably shouldn't be telling you at all, Sammy but that damn spell has been more trouble than it was worth and I don't want to be tempted to do it again. You had better stop moping around because one son who's obsessed with collecting notches on his bed post is enough for me."

As John retreated from the bed room, Sam was still grinning. He couldn't help smiling at the thought that all of Dean's conquests were the result of a spell that just wouldn't wear off. John also couldn't stop smiling, happy that his plan had worked and his youngest son was in a more cheerful mood.

"Did it work?" Dean asked, keeping his voice low so that Sam wouldn't be able to hear through the thin walls.

"Like a charm, Son." John replied with a wry smile as he opened his journal. "Like a charm"

When John had told Dean about his plan, Dean had been quite impressed. John was quite capable of coming up with convincing cover stories to give to the authorities but this was quite inventive. Dean didn't think his dad had that much imagination and he was worried that Sam would not believe him at all but John seemed pretty confident that he bought it. Sam mustn't be as clever as he seemed, Dean reasoned. Voodoo priests? A mojo love spell on the Impala? Yeah, right. Who would believe a crazy story like that?

A/N - And we're done! If the story made you smile, I have reached my goal. Thanks for reading!


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